A Much Darker World
by ExactChase
Summary: Ruby didn't like Cardin, and Cardin didn't like Ruby. No one ever thought he'd go this far, over a sparring match. [Rated M for blood and violence, and probably some cussing]
1. Chapter 1

During combat training, Ruby was paired with Cardin to spar. Cardin thought she would be easy, but that was only because she went easy on people she didn't know and her friends, Cardin was the exception to both of those, he wasn't her friend, and she did know him, in fact she didn't like him. It took a lot to earn Ruby's hatred, but Cardin always picked on Jaune, her boyfriend. Sparring was the only time she could let out her frustrations towards him, as Jaune refused to let her, or anyone for that matter, intervene with his own problems, even though Ruby insisted that his problems were her problems now, Jaune REALLY didn't like that idea, but was fine with her problems becoming his. Ruby didn't understand it, but decided that she wouldn't intervene unless it involved her, or her team.

As soon as the match started, Ruby used her semblance and slid under his legs, sweeping them out from under him, he rolled and managed to land on his feet, while she used her momentum from the slide, and kicked off the ground, launching herself into the air. She landed, hands first on top of his head, but due to her lesser weight, she didn't knock him off balance until, she put one hand on his shoulder and used her legs to take his out from under him, again. This time making sure he couldn't roll back to his feet.

After class, Cardin was infuriated. She had humiliated him, and he knew was going to get back at her for it. He also knew that her next class was without her team, and without anyone else who knew her, just Cardin.

He noticed that when she parted ways with her friends, she was running a bit late, but she didn't. The hallways were always this empty on her way to that class.

Cardin began to walk a little faster behind her, when her cloak moved, he saw that she didn't have her scythe. He looked around; no one was around.

He tapped on her shoulder, and she turned around, before she could react, he hit her. Hard. So hard that blood flew out of her nose and spattered on the lockers twenty feet away.

Her aura was down. And now she would focus it all on her now bleeding nose, leaving the rest of her body open.

"What the hell, Cardi—!?" He hit her in the stomach this time, and she began to fall to her knees, clutching her abdomen. As she went down, her face was level with Cardin's knee, which, shortly after, made contact with her mouth. Her head hit the tile floor with a loud smack.

Her head had hit the floor so hard that it dented it. Cardin them left her there. He knew he couldn't be late, that would make him the prime suspect. He wiped the blood off of his hands and pants.

Ten minutes after class started, Goodwitch came on the intercom, "Attention Professors, we are now in an emergency medical lockdown." She told them.

The professor for that class locked the door, and continued teaching.

After Goodwitch had gone on the intercom, she went and grabbed Yang from her class. "Am I in trouble?" Yang asked as the two went down the hallway. Goodwitch shook her head. "No..." she said. "Someone attacked your sister."

Yang's face went from nervousness to relief to worry. "Oh my God, is she okay?"

"We haven't had a chance to get a 100 percent analysis, but we think she has a broken nose, and at least a skull fracture. We just need you, being her legal guardian for the time being, to fill out some forms in case she has to go into surgery."

"Surgery?!"

"It's possible that her skull was bashed open, and if that's true, then they're gonna have to remove the fragments, because if they don't then some of the said fragments could get lodged into her brain and she would die."

"Why would someone do something like that?"

"Oh, I have a few ideas."

She took Yang to where Ruby was being handled, and Yang spent the next two hours filling out all kinds of paperwork, eventually having to call her father, who had been in the middle of a class.

"Yang, you know not to call me when I'm in class." He said.

"This is important."

"I hope so."

"Someone attacked Ruby in the hallways, and now I have to fill out all this paperwork that I don't know all the answers to."

She heard him put his hand over the mouthpiece, probably having to tell his class that he was leaving. "Sorry, but something's come up. I gotta go." Then she heard a shuffling noise. Running. "Are you at the Beacon infirmary, or one of the city hospitals?"

"Vale General."

"Okay. I'll be there as soon as I can. Okay?"

"Okay."


	2. Chapter 2

After a single class period or being in different classes, RWBY had another class together, which is why Weiss and Blake were surprised to see that the two sisters weren't there. When JNPR sat down beside them, Weiss asked, "Do you happen to know where the other two are?"

"Goodwitch pulled Yang out of class last period." Ren told her.

"Why?" Blake asked.

"Maybe it had something to do with the lockdown." Pyrrha suggested.

"That would indicate that Ruby had some kind of medical emergency." Ren added.

"I hope not," Jaune said.

"It seems to be the only explanation to why neither of them are here." Weiss told him.

Blake pulled out her scroll and texted Yang.

"Where are you guys?" Yang responded a minute later. "Someone attacked Ruby in the hallways. Wouldn't recommend coming down here, Dad is fucking livid and looking for someone to blame."

"Is she okay?"

"I haven't even gotten to see her yet."

"Keep us updated, we're worried."

Blake put her scroll away and turned to the others. "Found out what happened." She said.

"What?" Jaune asked.

"Someone attacked Ruby. She had to go to the hospital."

"That's horrible." Pyrrha said.

Three Hours Later...

When Ruby woke up, she was laying in a hospital bed, and she wasn't sure why. She could feel a breathing tube going into her nostrils, gauze and padding wrapped around the top of her head and her forehead, the most padding on the back of her head. Her left eye was swollen shut, and there were a few butterfly bandages on her nose, her upper lip, her right eyebrow. There was a huge bandage on her left cheek, and her stomach hurt, really, really bad.

She could hear voices from the other side of the room, "What's all wrong with her?" Her father's voice asked.

"Looks like she's got a major contusion in her stomach region, broken nose, possible brain damage, swollen eye, and a few chipped teeth." A woman's voice said, probably the doctor, or maybe even the nurse.

Ruby heard footsteps walking away quickly, and three pairs of footsteps, walking softly. A pair of sneakers, like what came with the school uniforms, and two pairs of dress shoes. Finally, someone spoke, "Taiyang," It was Ozpin, "I want you to know that I will pay all medical expenses."

"You don't have to do th—"

"Nonsense. This happened in my school. It was my fault for letting the students know that the cameras would be out today."

"We'll talk about this later. Do you know who could have done it? She doesn't make enemies very easily."

"One of her teammates, one that would become leader if anything happened to Ruby, was very jealous of Ruby's position. I thought this had passed, and it probably has, but I can't be too sure. I'll try to find out who did this."

She heard his footsteps walk away, and she turned onto her back, now being able to see that her father had left as well.

"How're you feeling?" Yang asked from Ruby's right, in a soft, kind voice.

"I've been worse off." Ruby responded, her voice quiet and hoarse. "What happened?"

"What's the last thing you remember?"

"I... Remember going to bed last night."

Yang waited a minute to make sure that's all Ruby remembered, also to figure out how to word it correctly. "Someone attacked you."

Ruby also paused, trying to figure out who and why.

"Why?" She asked.

"We were hoping you'd be able to tell us."

"I'm sorry. I can only really remember bits and pieces of..." Ruby thought for a minute.

"Today. It was today."

"I can only remember bits and pieces of today."

"It's okay."

Ruby laid her head back down, and went back to sleep. Soon after, Taiyan walked back in. "She woke up while you were gone," Yang told him.

"Does she know who did it?"

"No. She doesn't know what she had for breakfast this morning."

"Damnit."

The next day, JNPR, Weiss, and Blake saw that they had taped up the area where Ruby had gotten attacked, tape marking where she had been found, and blood on the ground and on a few lockers. They stopped and listened to one of the forensics guys, who was kind of explaining what had happened.

He was a well built man with reddish-brown hair and a thin stubble. He wore a bowling shirt and a simple ID badge.

"Let's say the victim was walking here, about 5'4." He shrunk himself down to about the same height. "She turns." He turned his head. "Gets nailed in the face." He slung his head to the left, then pointed at the bloody locker. "Blood hits the locker. She stumbles. Caught off guard." He stumbled, holding his nose. "More blood drips on the floor. She stops here. And faces her assailant." He turned towards where the people were watching him act this whole thing out, his feet lined up with where Ruby's were.

"She gets hit in the stomach." He clutched his stomach, and acted out the blood getting shot out into the floor, leaving a footprint of someone. "On her way down to her knees, they knee her in the face," he threw his head up towards the ceiling, pointing at the blood in the ceiling. "Her head hit the floor here." He pointed to where the blood splatter was, which was where her head would have been, then to the pool of blood beside it. "Blood pools out of her mouth until someone gets there, due to the size of this, I'd say they found her ten minutes later." He looked down at the bare spot the shoe had left. "They somehow got blood on their shoe," he followed the footprints to the end of the hallway, where they faded away. He pointed at one of the male students, who had been watching him do this. "Can I see one of your shoes?" The kid took off his shoe and tossed it to the man, who held it up to the bloody shoe pattern. "It was a student... Men's size 12."

Most of the crowd dispersed, but WB and JNPR stuck around, listening to the team of detectives talk to one another.

"I didn't work my way out of vice, just so I could find out who stole some little girl's lunch money." One of the female detectives said.

"He did a little more than steal her lunch money." The forensics guy said.

"He didn't steal anything," the sergeant said. "And it's not just 'some girl' it's Taiyang Xiao-Long and Summer Rose's daughter."

"Who?" The woman asked.

"They both used to be one of us, 'til Summer became a huntress and died on the job."


	3. Chapter 3

WB and JNPR saw a blonde man with a haircut similar to Jaune's, but he was much, much older. He approached the crew of detectives and forensics. "What can you tell me aboutwhat happened to my daughter?" He asked them. He was Ruby's dad.

"Male, size 12 shoe." The forensics guy said.

"How's that gonna help?" Taiyang asked, he sounded a little angry, but also willing to listen.

"It means this guy is a big guy. Also, the soles on the shoes he was wearing were most definitely white. Blood doesn't come out so easily."

Later that week...

Yang walked back into the dorm, and began grabbing Ruby's things. Not everything, but just stuff she needed, leaving the stuff she could do without for a while. "How's Ruby?" Blake asked, trying to see if Yang would tell her why she was packing.

"Getting released from the hospital today." Yang answered.

"That's great."

"Yeah, well Dad is going to over-protective-dad-mode, so he's taking her back to Patch until they find this guy. But she seems to still be in a lot of pain, so I don't think it's a good idea to put her in a car for a few hours like Dad's planning. He thinks it's the White Fang, but I doubt it."

"If it were the White Fang," Blake said, "They would have killed her, and taken credit for it."

Patch was only three hours away, but to Ruby, the first ten minutes felt like an eternity. Her stomach pain spiked with every bump her father hit. She was sprawled out in the back of her father's Crimson four-door, their things in the passenger seat.

At about fifteen minutes in, Taiyang realized his mistake, and pulled into the breakdown lane. He turned shuffled through his own bag for a minute, emerging with a pillow, which he handed to Ruby, and her pain medication. He gave her two pills, and handed her a water bottle. After that, he gave her a blanket. Taiyang himself got hot very easily, and had the A/C on, but Ruby got cold easily, and was wearing her sleeveless pajamas.

Before he even started the car, he could hear her soft snoring from the backseat. He adjusted the mirror so he could see her.

"You're not worried about Ruby?" Blake asked Yang during dinner that day. "Why should I be?" Yang said, "If you think I'm protective of her, I'm not responsible for her birth. Well, I kinda was, but in a different way." Yang chuckled.

"What do you mean?" Weiss asked.

"Well, when Mom left, Dad was not able to take care of me on his own, so his teammates helped out. One of those two was Ruby's mom. Ruby will be fine."

An hour and a half in, Taiyang had to get gas. When he began to pump the gas, he felt like someone was watching him, but ignored it. Ruby probably woke up, and was trying to figure out where they were. But when he got back in the car, she was still asleep.

Deciding that he was just getting old, Taiyang pulled into a parking space, and went inside to go to the bathroom, and buy something for himself to drink. He made a mental note to buy a large bottle of water in case Ruby woke up in pain.

While Taiyang was in the bathroom, a man in dark clothing ran up and unlocked the car with a wire hanger. Taiyang walked out of the bathroom, seeing his car start, he took off in a sprint. The car accelerated into reverse, and the man went ten feet before slamming on the brakes and running. "I didn't realize your kid was in there!" He yelled, running across the street.

When Taiyang got back in the car, he locked the Windows, and closed the panel that hid the wires. Once he had done that he woke up his daughter to see how she was doing.

"Huh?" She hoarsely asked, shielding her eyes from the fading light that leaked through the windows. "What's goin' on?"

"Your stomach hurt?" He asked her, disregarding the question. She shook her head. "Good." He said, "You can go back to sleep now." She nodded and rolled back over.

Once he could hear her soft snoring again, he lifted the screens in the back seat windows.


	4. Chapter 4

A/N: I don't really like OC's, but I might have to create them for this story, but probably not. And when I say I don't like OC's, I mean they're the bane of my existence.

The Xiao-Long residence wasn't far from Signal, and most students knew this, not that they would dare do anything to their teacher's house; he was probably one of the school's favorite, alongside Qrow. So, when one of his students saw him pull into his driveway from his classroom window, where a substitute was teaching, they were a little excited.

Taiyang stepped out of the driver-side of his car, and immediately saw the crowd of students staring out the window at him. He waved and motioned for them to sit back down. They retreated and he returned his focus to his youngest daughter. The students returned to the window without him noticing just as he picked Ruby up, bridal-style. She was still asleep and showed no signs of waking anytime soon. Anyone who had ever had Taiyang as their teacher knew about his daughters; he had pictures all over his classroom, on all four walls. The only picture in the room that didn't include what he called his, "X-Chromosomes", (claiming that he had used up all of his X chromosomes on the two and had none left,) was a photo of Team STRQ. His students also knew that, if they teased Ruby, Taiyang would turn a blind eye when Yang attacked them.

But when Ruby had suddenly disappeared from Signal one day, her friends asked where she went. He had promptly told them that she got into Beacon, and they didn't believe him until Ruby herself came to say goodbye before she left for the academy. When they saw Taiyang carrying his youngest daughter, the rumors immediately started to spread. Some said that she dropped out of Beacon and was so upset, her father needed to carry her inside. Others theorized that her teammates and friends tried to kill her for getting in early, or that she was incompetent and Ozpin made a mistake. If anyone asked Qrow about these, he would just frown and shake his head.

The next day, when Taiyang came back to work, his students began to ask questions of these rumors, he kindly told them that none of these rumors were true and that she simply got hurt. He told them what happened, leaving out the imagery of how much blood she had lost. He also told them that he might be out in the future if her condition worsened.

[Ruby]

When Ruby woke up, she saw that she was in her room at home; Zwei was laying down against her body, definitely in Guard-Mode as Yang called it. Ruby reached down and began to stroke the corgi, who, upon realization that Ruby was awake, scampered off. When he returned, he had a note in his mouth. He handed it to Ruby, who read it out loud. "Rubes, went to work, be back at usual time. Dad." Ruby carefully set the note down on her nightstand, and noticed her scroll within arms reach. She picked it up and checked the time; her team would be at lunch. She opened up the group message they had, and sent a message.

R: Hey.

B: Hey.

Y: Sup.

W: Hello.

R: I just wanted to let you guys know that I'm okay, since Yang says that none of you were allowed to see me.

B: That's good to hear.

W: We appreciate the update.

Y: What about the dog? We're all on the edge of our seats worrying about Zwei.

R: Lol. He's in "Guard-Mode"

W: "Guard-Mode"?

B: ?

Y: It's exactly what it sounds like. And why'd you put lol? I was completely serious.

R: Weiss-o serious.

B: Ugh

W: Don't. Just don't.

Y: *Grins proudly*

B: Don't encourage her, Ruby.

Y: Might as well have been a Chris Hemsworth pun…

W: Why?

Y: Because it left a Thor spot on you.

W: Mark my words I will kill both of you.

R: You wouldn't be the first to try, and you wouldn't be the first to fail, either.

W: You know I was just kidding, right?

R: I know that. Can't say the same about Yang, though.

B: Your sister already yelled at Weiss.

R: I can tell. Did she growl first?

B: Yes. It was actually kind of scary.

R: Yang, down, girl!

Y: I'm not a dog.

W: Yet that worked.

B: I think the weirdest part about this is that three of us are sitting right beside one another and are just giving each other dirty looks.

Y: Blake's laughing now.

R: Um… Okay? What do you want me to do? Blake rarely laughs. I'm not gonna stopping that.

Y: I wasn't trying to stop it, just thought you'd like to know.

W: And to be honest, we all laughed at your terrible pun.

R; if it was so bad, why'd you laugh?

W: Pity laugh

R: I don't want no pity

W: I don't want any pity*

Y: Oh, shut up, Weiss Queen.

W: I prefer that over Ice Queen.

B: Okay.

B: Ice Queen.

W: Hey!

R: Is there any verbal communication going on at the moment?

Y: We're reading our texts out loud to one another. We're just sending them in the first place because those two haven't spoken to you since class the other day.

B: We'd rather not isolate our leader.

R: I appreciate that. Thank you.

W: JNPR says hello.

R: Sup.

Y: Sorry, but we've got to go to classes. Catch you later! 3 you sis!

Ruby set her scroll down, smiling. She enjoyed the talks she had with her team, and missed them. But she also hated being treated differently. She knew they were just being nice, after all, they were her best friends. She also knew that they were worried about her, which was why she had texted them in the first place. Just as she thought about this, her scroll buzzed. She picked it up.

Y: Hey.

R: I thought you had classes…

B: We do.

W: But it's Port.

R: I don't care whose class it is, you need to pay attention. You could get in trouble.

Ruby could almost hear Yang's groan, see Blake's nod, saying everything Ruby wanted to hear, and Weiss' cold silence of approval.

Y: Why do you always have to be right?

R: Because I'm in charge. And while I'm not there, you three are to be on your best behavior. Got it?

B: I thought Yang was the Mom-Friend.

R: She's the "warm and fuzzy" Mom-Friend, I'm the, "Do what I tell you" Mom-Friend.

[Insert a few moments of nothing]

R: I expected more talking back.

Y: Nope.

W: You've earned our respect.

Y: I respect my dad, but I still talk back.

R: Oh… Looks like Yang is going behind my back with this, is she?

B: I'm not in her class.

W: Neither am I.

R: I can monitor what you do on your scrolls. Yang's on Tinder.

Y: How long have you had that ability?

R: The whole year. And Trevor is definitely a player. Swipe.

B: That's hilarious.

R: Ninjas of Love, Blake? Really?

B: I have no idea what you're talking about.

R: [Screenshot of Blake's Scroll]

W: Christ, Blake. Is that what you're reading in class?

Y: Steamy~

R: Weiss. You have no room to comment on this subject; you're either A; trying to see if Neptune is texting other girls, or B; trying to access his "less than appropriate" photos.

Y: We got fucking schooled.

R: I can also block you from sending texts. Don't embarrass your sisters by sending this to JNPR.

W: Sisters?

B: I accused her of acting like a mother, and now she's screwing with us.

R: And Yang…

Y: ?

R: [Screenshot of Age Of Ultron; "Language!"]

Ruby waited a few moments for Yang to respond. She didn't, so Ruby sent another message.

R: And one more thing before I send you girls back to class…

W: ?

B: ?

Y: ?

R: I can also block your scroll's access to inappropriate websites. You may know these websites as porn. I have seen no need to block these websites for you, regardless of the fact that I have seen all three of you access them when you go to the bathroom. Don't give me a reason to take away your porn.

B: What reason would you have to take our porn?

R: Accessing it during class like you have a tendency to do, Blake. I don't even need to access my scroll to see that you're watching hardcore porn in class when you're sitting right next to me with your scroll sitting face up on your desk. I am fifteen I do not need to see that shizz.

W: Never have I ever gone to dirty websites!

R: [Screenshot of Weiss' screen from several days prior. It is labeled "W" and is obviously in the same program]

W: How are you allowed to have this app?

R: I may not pay for your scroll plan, but I manage it.

W: My father manages mine.

R: It was transferred to Beacon when you were accepted in. I remember because my leader class had us do that on day one. Now, are you going back to class?

WBY: Yes.

R: Yes what?

WBY: Yes, ma'am.

R: Have a good day, girls.

Ruby set down her scroll again, proud of herself for being able to get them to listen, but also proud of her team for listening. She wondered if Jaune had that level of control, doubting he had any control over Nora. She began to wonder if that would be the case if Nora was her subordinate. She came to the conclusion that there are some things that just can't be controlled, and Nora was one of those things. Ruby smiled at the thought of her friends, if her team was doing okay without her there, then so were her friends. After all, her team relied on her so that they didn't kill one another. Sure, they had gotten better about it recently, but Ruby felt as though the second she left the room, everything would fall apart. This was why Ruby kept telling herself that she would have to be more strict, she just couldn't bring herself to do it, but now that she did, she felt much better about her team.


	5. Chapter 5

That day, Ruby did a lot of sleeping, regardless of the fact that she had been doing that everyday since the incident. The amount of aura it took to heal her was exhausting, but it didn't seem to work and if it was working, it would definitely be a while before she returned to Beacon. Ruby went a week without incident at home, and Taiyang did everything in his power to make sure nothing bad happened to her, even helping her walk to the bathroom when she needed it.

After a week, Ruby tried to to stand on her own for the first time since the incident. It didn't go well. As soon as she stood, she was lightheaded, but figured she just stood up too fast. Once she reached the hallway, she immediately lost her footing and fell against the wall. She luckily didn't fall to the floor, and pushed off the wall, straightening up. It wasn't long before she began to see little black dots. When she woke up, her head was throbbing, and she could hear Zwei continuously barking down the hallway. The natural light had dimmed, meaning Ruby had been out for a bit. There was also some warm and sticky liquid on the floor near her head, she couldn't see it, but she could smell it, and it smelled like iron. Blood; it was blood.

Ruby must have hit her head when she passed out. Zwei's barking grew nearer, and she heard her father trying to calm the corgi, "What is it, boy?" He asked. "Something wrong." Zwei stopped barking and began to whimper. The whimpering was right on top of her, and she heard the sound of someone running, Taiyang had definitely seen her. "Ruby!" He shouted. He kneeled down next to her and turned her from her side, onto her back. He could hear her breathing, and that made him feel better about her situation. He quickly patted Zwei's head to encourage the dog to report this stuff in the future.

Ruby's face was caked in blood, except for a few marks that looked like Zwei had tried to wake her up by licking her face. Ruby groaned, but really couldn't look at her father due to the overhead lights he had turned on. It seemed to her, as though she was drifting in and out of consciousness. "Ruby." He said. "I'm gonna call an ambulance, okay?" She groaned in response, mostly because that was the only sound she could make. To her, the room was spinning and she felt nauseous. She wished it would stop, and screwed her eyes shut until she felt two people pick her up. She was laid down on some sort of bed, but didn't dare open her eyes in fear of vomiting. But she couldn't help it. Once they reached the ambulance, Ruby began to gag and cough, signaling to the paramedics that she was about to vomit. They forced her to sit up, and made sure she vomited in the bag they had given her.

[Later]

When Ruby woke up, she was at the hospital, and considering the fact that it was now dark out, she thought that she had been out for at least an hour. But when she looked around the room, she realized that she had been or for much longer; Yang was asleep in the chair to her right, and Taiyang her left. In the darkest corner of the room, Ruby could see the shadow of her uncle. Though she couldn't see his face, she could tell that he was watching her every move, carefully; as if he was checking for any abnormalities in her behavior. "Uncle Qrow?" She asked, breaking the uncomfortable silence. Qrow stood and stepped out of the shadows. "Yeah?" He asked, crossing his arms.

"What happened?" She asked.

"Tai says he found you in the hallway, unconscious and covered in blood, says you were vomiting. All that bad stuff. You remember any of it?" Qrow was leaving out a few key details, not that Ruby noticed. She shook her head. "Why would I be home, and not at Beacon?" She asked. Qrow raised an eyebrow. "What's the last thing you remember?" He asked, sitting on the window seal. Ruby paused for a second. "I remember going to bed." She told him.

"Where?" He asked.

"Beacon…" She said, tilting her head in confusion. She looked down at the ground for a second, then back up at him, and her face lit up. "Uncle Qrow? When did you get here?" She asked.

A/N: I'm just gonna say this, because I know someone's gonna ask, "If Ruby's losing her memory, then why is she aware of how much time has passed?" And the reason for that is, she doesn't forget immediately, it's slower and fragmentational


	6. Chapter 6

Qrow's eyes widened and he kneeled beside her bed, making eye contact but not saying a word. "What's the last thing you remember?" He finally asked. She paused, "Um…. Professor Ozpin said I could get into Beacon early!" Her face lit up as she said this, but Qrow frowned. "What's wrong?" She asked, her face imitating his.

"That was almost a year ago, Ruby." Qrow told her. "You're already the leader of your own team there." He looked down. "And you don't remember any of that, do you?" She shook her head and he stood. "I'm calling a nurse." He told her.

"Oh, Uncle Qrow! When did you get here?" She asked yet again. He stopped walking for the door, turned to her and frowned, continuing on his way.

[Elsewhere]

It had been a very long time since Jaune had seen his girlfriend, and needless to say; he was worried. He had known that there was no way for him to visit her, he had tried to gain entry to her hospital room, but was laughed at when he told them that he was her boyfriend. And then they moved her to Patch. There was no way he would see her until she fully recovered, and it killed him. He knew it would be a while before that happened, and believe it or not; he actually liked having her around. She was nice, funny and kinda hot. What else could he want from a woman? On top of all that; she understood him a molecular level. She was perfect in his eyes and vice-versa. The two were legitimately compatible, they got along perfectly. Jaune actually loved her, he cared about her. But he couldn't even visit her in the hospital. It made him feel better to know that not even Weiss and Blake could visit her. But it also made him feel bad for her, even more than he already did. Jaune's grades were suffering from Ruby's absence, there wasn't a second that went by that he didn't think about her. But maybe he was a little too distracted.

Jaune was thinking about her as he walked to a class where Ruby would normally accompany him, so he didn't really think much of the empty hallway that would usually be empty except for him and her. He didn't think much of the larger student following him. Until he felt someone tap on his shoulder. He knew how the person who got Ruby attacked; they got her attention before attacking. This was the fucker who got Ruby. Jaune didn't stop walking, just sped up. The person was still right behind him. Jaune took off into a sprint, and the person tackled him. Cardin pinned Jaune down, and began to hit him in the face over and over again. This confirmed Jaune's suspicions about Cardin being Ruby assailant, and his rage flared.

Jaune managed to get up, using his large amount of aura to work against Cardin. Jaune pinned him against the wall and repeatedly punched him in the face until he surrendered; putting his hands up, and sliding down the wall. Then Jaune just knocked him out with a final punch. Jaune quickly pulled out his scroll and called Ozpin, "Problem, Mister Arc?" Ozpin asked.

"Yeah." Jaune said, still breathing heavily. "Found the b— guy who attacked Ruby. It was Cardin." Ozpin paused for a moment. "How did you come across this information?" He asked.

"He tried me." Jaune told him.

"And how did you avoid Miss Rose's fate?" Ozpin asked.

"I fought back." Jaune said. Ozpin paused again. "I find it hard to believe that you overpowered Mister Winchester… Unless you surprised him."

"What are you saying?" Jaune asked. "I didn't— are you saying I did that to Ruby?!" His grip on his scroll tightened, and he could hear the glad begin to crack.

"I was just saying it was a possibility." Ozpin calmly said, despite having just been shouted at. "Now, if you would come down to my office, we could sort this whole thing out."

Jaune frowned. "What about Cardin?"

"We'll deal with him later." Ozpin said.

Jaune wasn't stupid, he knew exactly what was going on, Ozpin's tone told him everything he needed to know; Ozpin didn't believe him. But what other choice did he have? If he ran, that would remove any indication that he was innocent, other than his own word. He had no choice. Jaune quickly made his way to Ozpin's office, stepping off the elevator, he felt his anger build. "Mister Arc. Take a seat." Ozpin motioned for Jaune to sit down, but he didn't. "I'm good here." He just stood behind the two chairs in front of his desk. Ozpin nodded. "Do you mind telling me what happened?" He asked.

Jaune shook his head, "Not at all." Jaune told Ozpin exactly what happened, sure not to leave out any details. Once he finished, Ozpin seemed to be convinced. "Mister Winchester will be dealt with accordingly. Feel free to take the rest of the day off." He said. Jaune nodded and began to walk for the door, but stopped before he got there. "Wait." He said. "Do you know how Ruby's doing?" Jaune turned around and Ozpin successfully hid a grin, while he knew it was a serious matter, Jaune's concern for Ruby made him smile. "I do." Ozpin told him, his face now solemn. "She is suffering from memory loss. She doesn't remember her own teammates, and I doubt she remembers anything else about Beacon."

"What?" Jaune asked, shocked. "Yang told us she was doing fine last time I saw her. What changed?"

"She passed out and cracked her skull back open when she fell. I'm sorry to have to tell you this," Ozpin said, watching Jaune's face for any signs of an outburst. "But she seems to be forgetting more and more. It's unknown at this time if her memory will return. I'm sorry."

Jaune turned around and disappeared into the elevator, opting to return to his dorm room. It hurt to know that his girlfriend didn't even know who he was anymore. It hurt a lot. Did that make him single? Did they have an accidental break-up? He didn't know the answers to these questions, and didn't like it. He felt so helpless. And he hated it. He hated that feeling more than anything.


End file.
